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My 3 Favorite Draft Archetypes of Eldritch Moon Limited

Hey everyone, I’m really enjoying Eldritch Moon limited so far. Here are 3 archetypes that I’ve enjoyed drafted, along with some important cards for each archetype. Enjoy!

“Green-Black Delirium”

The Strategy: G/B Delirium revolves around utilizing the graveyard and essentially “grinding out” your opponent through valuable exchanges. Since Eldritch Moon has proved to be more grindy and slower than the Shadows Over Innistrad format, delirium is a strategy I’ve loved to draft these past few weeks.

Important Pick Ups:

Gnarlwood Dryad: Cheap creatures with deathtouch are always solid since they’re able to put opposing large ground creatures at bay, and Gnarlwood Dryad does just that, and then some.

Grapple with the Past: As a way to reach delirium while picking up a creature or land, Grapple is a must-include for a strategy that utilizes the graveyard. I’ve also played games where I’ve fired this off on turn 2 or 3 just to insure I hit my land drops.

Midnight Scavengers: Scavengers fits great into any G/B deck, even if we haven’t picked up a Graf Rats. It’s a great way to buyback our Gnarlwood Dryads or Thraben Foulbloods or any other cheap creatures we’ve milled.

Crop Sigil: Although slower than Grapple with the Past, Crop Sigil is a way to consistently put cards into the graveyard and hit delirium. I don’t like this card as much as Grapple or Vessel of Nascency, but if you’re low on delirium outlets this is an auto-include in the deck.

Decent Filler:

Thraben Foulbloods: A 3/2 for 3 mana creature is always fine to include in any deck, but once delirium is active, Foulbloods turns into a real beater. If you’re able to hit delirium early, you can find yourself pushing through lots of damage with this card. Also of note is its zombie creature type. It can trigger cards like Cemetery Recruitment, which is consistently relevant.

Rise from the Grave: Although when you cast this card on turn five you may not be hitting any large creatures, bringing back a Thraben Foulbloods or one of your opponents best 2 or 3 drops is fine. Rise from the Grave also gets marginally better as the game goes on and you have to deal with your opponent’s larger threats.

Wailing Ghoul: 1/3’s for 2 don’t necessarily excite me, but Wailing Ghoul can help hit delirium and act as a reasonable blocker early on in the game.

Rares that Make the Deck Great:

Noosegraf Mob: I’ve found the G/B Delirium archetype to be the place where Noosegraf Mob really shines. In grindy games, being able to flood the board with 2/2’s can be backbreaking, especially if you have a Grapple with the Past or a Cemetery Recruitment as a way to replay Mob.

Grim Flayer: Everyone’s favorite G/B 2/2 in standard and modern proves to be just as powerful in limited, being able to set up delirium early on in a game or prove to be a powerful attacker once delirium is active.

“Blue-Red Spells”

The Strategy: Unlike the “U/R Spells” archetype in Shadows over Innistrad limited, which revolved around drafting multiple instants and sorceries to fuel a large Rise from the Tides, in Eldritch Moon this archetype looks to pick up spell-based creatures to get through smaller, but multiple amounts of damage.

Important Pick Ups:

Thermo-Alchemist: One of the bread-and-butter creatures of the deck, Alchemist can put through a lot of damage when your deck contains a good mixture of instants and sorceries, especially if you have multiple.

Ingenious Skaab: An upgrade to Watercourser, Ingenious Skaab acts as a solid attacker and blocker when your deck is packed multiple cards that trigger prowess.

Vexing Scuttler: In an archetype where spell-based creatures are vital to push through incremental damage, you won’t find yourself adding a ton of emerge creatures to your deck. However, Scuttler is one I’m always happy to play to get back my Galvanic Bombardments or Chilling Grasps – a4/5 is also just a solid body to attack or defend with.

Weaver of Lightning: Weaver is not only great at blocking creatures on the ground with 3 or less power, but can also pick off those pesky Tattered Haunters and Nebelgast Heralds. Weaver is just a great creature that helps defend while you push through damage with your Thermo-Alchemists.

Decent Filler:

Shreds of Sanity: Adding more fuel to the Thermo-Alchemist fire, Shreds can get back your Incendiary Flows and Chilling Grasps while also providing a madness outlet for any Fiery Tempers you pick up in your Shadows over Innistrad Pack.

Chilling Grasp: Although I don’t like this card in every blue deck, Grasp can help you push through damage with your Thermo-Alchemists and Ingenious Skaabs while keeping your opponent’s creatures locked down for a turn.

Curious Homunculus // Voracious Reader: Although I’m not usually in the market for 2 mana 1/1s, curiously enough this card has impressed me. Adding colorless to cast only instants and sorceries can be important if you’re looking to fire off a Spreading Flames or Reduce to Ashes earlier than expected, and once transformed into Voracious Reader, a 3/4 with prowess for an initial investment of 2 mana is no laughing matter, and the ability to reduce the casting cost of your spells by 1 is exceptional when you’re hungry for mana.

Rares that Make the Deck Great:

Nibils of Frost: When your deck is playing upwards to nine or more instants and sorceries, Nibils helps push through large amounts of damage while keeping your opponents most pressing creatures at bay.

Elder Deep-Fiend: Again, I’m not looking to include multiple emerge cards in a deck where spell-based creatures matter, but when you’re pushing through small amounts of damage every turn of the game with cards like Thermo-Alchemist, Deep-Fiend helps put your opponent off from attacking or utilizing their mana for a turn and brings you one step closer to putting through the final point of damage with an Alchemist.

“Green-White Humans”

The Strategy: G/W Humans looks to go wide with solid attacking creatures. Certain builds of the deck can include cards like Lunarch Mantle to push through large amounts of damage with evasion and others can look to go wide with cards like Hamlet Captain and Borrowed Grace.

Important Pick Ups:

Courageous Outrider: A 3/4 for four mana is a fine rate, and one that can potentially draw a creature is even better.

Faith Unbroken: Although at uncommon, Faith Unbroken may be more unlikely to pick up compared to other white removal such as Choking Restraints and Sigardian Priest, this enchantment can really pack a punch when you’re able to remove your opponent’s best blocking creature while making one of your 2 or 3 mana creatures into a threatening attacker.

Hamlet Captain: 2 mana 2/2’s with an upside are again solid pick ups and Captain is essential when you’re looking to go wide with an army of humans.

Decent Filler:

Crossroads Consecrator: There aren’t many cards in Eldritch Moon that payoff for drafting multiple humans, but Consecrator is a great way to buff up your humans in combat. However I don’t like really including this card unless my deck is somewhat aggressive, 1 mana 1/2’s aren’t necessarily a great rate.

True-Faith Censer: Censer has always been a decent equipment to include in these low to the ground decks, and it’s great at buffing up your Courageous Outriders from 3/4’s into threatening 5/5’s.

Faithbearer Paladin: Although on the surface a 3/4 with lifeline for five mana isn’t essentially promising, when you’re put into situations where you have to win a damage race, Paladin plays a great role at pushing through damage while keeping you at a healthy lifetotal, especially when you have multiple ways to increase its power with cards like Lunarch Mantle or Crossroads Consecrator.

Fiend Binder: Although I’m not looking to include this card in every white deck, this card fits great into a G/W deck that’s looking to clutter up the board with creatures and attack.

Ironclad Slayer: 3/2s for 3 is a fine body, and when you’re looking to get back a Choking Restraints to lock down an opposing creature or get back a Lunarch Mantle to suit-up one of your attacking creatures, Slayer can prove to be an important addition to the deck.

Rares that Make the Deck Great:

Heron’s Grace Champion: 4 mana for a 3/3 with flash and lifelink is great, but when you’re aiming to deploy an army of humans and be aggressive this card can act as a great way to pump your team and gain a significant amount of life in the process.

Collective Effort: I’ve sometimes found myself casting this card to be able to just put a +1/1 counter on my team or as a removal spell for an opposing threatening creature, but being able to pick off a Choking Restraints or Sleep Paralysis in addition to one of the other choose one effects can turn the tide. I also love that to add on any of the other choose one effects I don’t have to pay any extra mana as is common with the other escalate cards.